Sports Illustrated's Fittest 50

Fitness. For the professional male athlete it is the very foundation of success. But even among the pros, some athletes stand head and sculpted shoulders above the rest. The natural question, then: Who is the fittest male athlete in sports? For our first-ever Fittest 50, SI’s editors and writers set out to find the answer. We assessed the best of the best across all sports, using a 40-point rating system based on four criteria.

• Strength: the pushing power of a lineman or the force of an ultimate fighter.• Speed: the top end of a sprinter or the burst of a running back.• Endurance: a runner's bottomless reserve or a boxer’s ability to keep going in a bout.• Agility: the balance of a downhill skier or a euro step at full speed on the break

As the rankings that follow make clear, the fittest of the fit come in all shapes and sizes, and from all corners of the athletic world. Count down to see who’s the fittest of them all, and stay tuned for our Fittest 50 female athletes in the world, coming soon.